Chapter 65: The Petty Rat Strikes Back—Zhao Wuji Won't Be Getting Away This Time
Xiao Wu felt a little uncomfortable under his intense gaze. Her fingers unconsciously tugged at the collar of her pajamas.
"A-Ah Qing… why are you staring at me like that…?"
She muttered softly, her voice gentle and fluffy.
"Cough, cough."
Lin Qingmo snapped back to his senses and coughed a couple of times awkwardly.
He climbed off the bed and naturally walked over, taking the towel from Xiao Wu's hands.
As he gently dried her hair, he smiled and said,
"Nothing much. I just think my Xiao Wu looks especially pretty after a shower—smells nice too, like a little bunny that makes people want to take a bite."
"A-Ah Qing, y-you're so annoying!"
Xiao Wu's face turned even redder.
She complained with her mouth, yet her body was very honest—she didn't dodge at all, letting him continue drying her hair.
His warm fingertips occasionally brushed against her scalp, sending comfortable tingles through her.
Once her hair was mostly dry, Lin Qingmo casually draped the towel over the back of a chair.
Then he walked back to the bed, lifted the blanket, and naturally patted the space beside him.
"Come on, lie down. It's getting a bit chilly at night."
"Uu… o-okay…"
The shy Xiao Wu obediently climbed onto the bed and burrowed under the blanket.
Lin Qingmo lay down as well. With a simple reach of his arm, he gently pulled her into his embrace.
Surrounded by his warm, solid chest, her nose filled with Ah Qing's clean, pleasant scent. Xiao Wu felt the day's excitement and fatigue wash over her all at once.
She snuggled closer, finding an even more comfortable position in his arms.
"Ah Qing, good night."
Her voice was already thick with sleepiness, soft and indistinct.
"Good night."
Lin Qingmo lowered his head and lightly kissed her smooth forehead.
The girl in his arms soon began breathing evenly and steadily—clearly already asleep.
"She fell asleep so fast."
He chuckled softly. By the faint moonlight filtering through the window, Lin Qingmo studied Xiao Wu's peaceful sleeping face.
Her long eyelashes were like tiny fans, casting delicate shadows beneath her eyes.
The corners of her lips were slightly raised, as if she were having a sweet dream.
A gentle smile unconsciously appeared on his face.
But immediately after, a long sigh echoed in his heart.
Help… who could fall asleep like this?!
Holding a living, breathing, soft and fragrant beauty in his arms—
That faint scent on her body, a mix of soapnut freshness and a young girl's natural fragrance, kept drifting straight into his nose.
His arm could clearly feel the soft curves of her body.
Through the thin pajamas, her warmth was transmitted distinctly.
Lin Qingmo felt his blood starting to disobey him, his heart pounding like a drum.
If he could still fall asleep instantly without a single stray thought in this situation, then he truly might have been a reincarnated saint.
He lay stiffly, not daring to move an inch, afraid of waking Xiao Wu.
His mind began wandering wildly, desperately trying to distract himself—
Using all kinds of random thoughts to drive away those untimely, inappropriate fantasies.
...
The night grew deeper and deeper.
Shrek Academy fell completely into slumber, so quiet that one could hear distant insect chirps and the continuous rustling of leaves stirred by the wind.
This tranquility felt like a fragile sheet of thin ice.
"Boom!"
An indescribable, utterly terrifying pressure suddenly erupted without warning from deep within the forest behind the academy!
Like a ten-thousand-ton boulder smashing violently into a calm lake, it instantly shattered all the peace in the woods.
It wasn't a sound—yet it was far more frightening than any deafening roar.
It was a tremor and fear that came straight from the soul, pressing heavily on every living being in the forest.
Even the crickets fell silent in an instant.
Within the woods.
Zhao Wuji and Flender were in an utterly miserable state, kneeling on the ground.
Yes—kneeling.
Not because they wanted to, but because it felt as though an invisible mountain was crushing down on their shoulders.
That tyrannical, overwhelming force brutally suppressed their Soul Saint–level cultivation, making it impossible for them to straighten their backs!
Both men were pale as paper, cold sweat covering their foreheads and backs. Their clothes were already soaked through, clinging tightly to their skin.
Thump, thump, thump!
Their hearts pounded wildly in their chests.
Every breath felt unbearably difficult, as if someone were choking them.
All because of the black-robed figure standing with his back to them.
That man was merely standing there casually.
No soul rings appeared around him, and he wasn't deliberately releasing any aura.
Yet that natural presence—like he was fused with the surrounding space itself—was enough to drive one into despair.
Flender used every ounce of strength he had to raise his head, his teeth chattering.
"Clear Sky Douluo?"
His voice was dry and hoarse, filled with incomprehensible shock.
How could the Clear Sky Douluo, who had vanished for who knows how many years, suddenly appear at their tiny Shrek Academy?
And judging by the situation, he had come specifically for Old Zhao.
When has that blockhead ever offended someone of such terrifying stature?!
Flender's mind was in complete chaos.
He struggled to shift his gaze toward Zhao Wuji, who was kneeling beside him as well, and forced out a faint voice through clenched teeth.
"Old Zhao… What exactly did you do? How did you provoke Clear Sky Douluo?"
"..."
Zhao Wuji was even more bewildered.
The flesh on his face trembled as he desperately resisted the pressure.
"I… I didn't, Dean!"
His voice was bitter, so wronged he was almost on the verge of tears.
He was just a mere Soul Saint—give him a hundred guts and he still wouldn't dare provoke a Titled Douluo!
Besides, he spent all day in the academy, which was in such a remote place. How could he possibly run into a Titled Douluo?
"Today I only tested those new students according to the rules. I didn't go anywhere else or provoke anyone! How would I know—"
He didn't get to finish.
Because the black-robed figure in front of them slowly turned around.
It was a weathered yet sharply defined face. Those deep eyes, like bottomless icy pools, were now staring at them coldly.
As his gaze swept over them, the temperature in the air seemed to drop several degrees.
"Xiao San is my son."
Tang Hao spoke.
His voice was hoarse, like a frigid winter wind, chilling them to the bone.
"Xiao San? Tang San?!"
Flender and Zhao Wuji reacted almost instantly.
They saw the same disbelief reflected in each other's eyes.
That gloomy, reckless boy with the Blue Silver Grass martial soul—Tang San—was actually the son of Clear Sky Douluo Tang Hao?!
The revelation struck them like a bolt of lightning.
In an instant, all doubts were resolved.
Why had Clear Sky Douluo suddenly descended?
Why did he show such clear hostility toward Zhao Wuji?
The reason was simple—Zhao Wuji had beaten up his son during the test earlier that day!
Even though it was only an entrance examination.
Even though Zhao Wuji hadn't gone all out.
Even though Tang San had only been injured because he had recklessly charged in himself.
But in the eyes of a father—
Especially a father who was a supremely powerful, extremely protective Titled Douluo
The nature of the matter was entirely different.
—
End of Chapter